


Stupid little furball

by FemmeBrulee



Series: FemmeBrulee's works, Dramione Last Drabble Writer Standing 2020 [3]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Falling In Love, Loneliness
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-06
Updated: 2020-08-06
Packaged: 2021-03-06 01:02:07
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 494
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25744777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FemmeBrulee/pseuds/FemmeBrulee
Summary: Hermione sees Draco in a whole new light when he befriends a cat
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Series: FemmeBrulee's works, Dramione Last Drabble Writer Standing 2020 [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1867522
Comments: 2
Kudos: 78





	Stupid little furball

**Author's Note:**

> First place winner, Dramione LDWS Round 3: Peony/Compassion

If you asked Hermione Granger about the exact moment she fell in love, she'd laugh and tell you that people didn't fall in love all at once, but in small, discrete moments scattered like loose leaves across time.

She'd tell you about the balmy spring afternoon in the Cheshire safe house when she spotted Draco Malfoy conversing with a peony bush.

"... you stupid fucking creature. Hold still so I can…"

She watched from the window as he crouched on all fours, reaching around for something on the flowerbed. It was the first time she had heard his voice in weeks. The prickling loneliness of his new life among the Order was breaking him, she could tell, but he’d die before he let anyone believe it.

"...fuck's sake, I am trying to _help_ you!"

He yanked his arm back a few times, wincing, which was when she noticed the faint, pink scratches on his hands.

At one point, whatever-it-was took a swipe at his face.

Malfoy yelled and sprang to his feet, stepping back from the bush as he reassessed the situation. With a brief rustle of leaves, a small, grey cat emerged from the bush. All dirt, protruding bones and raised hackles, it hissed at him.

“I’m never going to get it out if you keep acting like this,” Malfoy told the cat, and Hermione’s breath caught at the sudden tenderness in his voice. She peered closer at the creature. It looked like it had been abandoned days ago and had somehow found its way to the house. It limped as it moved, a thorn protruding painfully from its paw.

“Tell you what," said Malfoy. "I’ll stay here, and you come to me when you’re ready. Does that sound good?” 

The cat continued to eye him warily as he lay down on the grass. They stayed that way for a while as Malfoy carried on talking to it in mild, soothing tones, occasionally extending his hand out so the cat could sniff him.

The sun dipped low in the sky. Hermione couldn’t tell you how long she watched them, or why. She did remember feeling a strange pang in her chest at the image of a man at war with the world and with himself, curled up on the grass and stretching out his hand to a scared and wounded cat. 

Eventually, the cat approached him, bumping its head against his fingers with a soft purr.

“That’s a good girl,” Malfoy whispered, scratching behind the cat’s ear. Hermione watched as he gently reached for the thorn embedded in the cat’s paw and removed it in one small, smooth motion.

“There. No need to be scared anymore,” he said, and he may as well have been talking to himself.

If you asked Hermione Granger when it was that something in her heart broke for Draco Malfoy, she'd smile and tell you about the time he almost lost an eye for a cat he barely knew.


End file.
